The Russian national team won its first Olympic medal in men’s basketball with an 81-77 win over Argentina on Sunday. Minnesota Timberwolves rookie Alexey Shved scored 25 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter, and Andrei Kirilenko added 20 points to help Russia prevail. Via SI.com: “Manu Ginobili scored 21 and Andres Nocioni 16 for Argentina, which was looking to add another bronze to its Olympic collection after winning one in China and gold eight years ago in Athens. But this tournament ended with Argentina’s players without a medal and looking for an explanation. ‘This is one of the most painful defeats of my life,’ Ginobili said. Fridzon’s layup with 5.2 seconds left sealed it for Russia, which came away with the ball after it changed hands several times near midcourt. When the game ended, several Argentine players surrounded referees Bill Kennedy, Jose Carrion and Juan Arteaga in protest and guard Pablo Prigioni kicked an electronic clock off the scorer’s table in disgust. A water bottle was thrown on the court that appeared to come from the stands. As the final seconds ticked off, Russia’s players piled on each other near one foul line while Argentina’s swarmed Kennedy and the other officials, screaming and demanding answers.”

Team Russia defeated Team Macedonia at Eurobasket in Lithuania today, in a contest that helped the Russians move on to the quarterfinals. The win was a dramatic one, coming at the buzzer off this banked-in three-pointer from Russia’s Sergei Monya. Peep the excitement above, courtesy of @outsidethenba.

As we approach the semifinals at the World Championships in Turkey, it’s apparent a few teams fell short of expectations. Who exited too early? Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

On Wednesday, Krzyzewski mocked a story that Blatt told about crying at the conclusion of the ’72 game as a teenager growing up in Massachusetts. Blatt recently watched a new documentary on the final minutes of the game and changed his opinion on how the events played out.

“He’s Russian,” Krzyzewski told reporters. “He coaches the Russian team. So he probably has that viewpoint. His eyes are clearer now because there are no tears in them.”

“I’m not Russian,” Blatt countered to Yahoo! Sports. “I’m an American-Israeli. But I’m proud that I can view things objectively and form my own opinion with the hope that it doesn’t insult anybody. If anything, it only asks people to be a little more open-minded and fair about things.

“I thought we were past this,” Blatt said. “Shouldn’t Mike be proud that an American coach has made his way to Europe and become coach of the Russian national team? If people are still getting emotional about that thing 40 years later or trying to use it in a way to further their own cause, so be it.”